Well-known Idaho Falls Rotarian dies after rollover crash

AMERICAN FALLS — A man from Idaho Falls passed away on Sunday following a car crash.

Bruce Turner, 72, from Idaho Falls, passed away at Portneuf Medical Center after a single-vehicle crash on Interstate 86, east of American Falls. The Bannock County Coroner’s office put out a press release Wednesday afternoon, saying Turner’s next of kin had been notified.

“My heart goes out to Bruce’s family and friends as they grieve this sudden loss,” said Coroner Torey Danner.

According to a release from the Idaho State Police, Turner was a passenger in a 2001 Ford Explorer when the driver overcorrected, “causing the Explorer to roll into the median” at approximately 3:44 p.m.

The driver, a 35-year-old Nigerian man, Turner, and the female passenger were all transported to Portneuf Medical Center, where Turner succumbed to his injuries.

Executive Secretary Elaine Gray of the Idaho Falls Rotary Club said that Barbara Turner, Bruce’s wife, was the other passenger in the vehicle. Gray has heard that Barbara was being transferred from Portneuf Medical Center to a hospital in Salt Lake City.

“We’re shocked and very sad to learn of the accident that happened Sunday afternoon,” Gray said to EastIdahoNews.com.

Turner, a former president of the Rotary Club from July 2015 to July 2016, was a “dedicated Rotarian,” Gray said.

“You would see (Bruce and Barbara) at every service project for the Rotary Club,” Gray said. “You never saw Bruce at a Rotary function, whether it be a service project or a Rotary party, without Barbara by his side.”

No arrests have been made in regard to the crash, according to ISP.

ISP was assisted by Power County Sheriff, Power County EMS and Bannock County EMS in responding to the accident, which is under investigation by ISP.